"Because I'm worth it."

August 23, 2010 7:43 AM

From the BBC blog of documentary filmmaker Adam Curtis: Experiments in the Laboratory of Consumerism 1959-67: "I have quite a lot of film from the archives that was shot in the Madison Avenue agencies in the mid 1960s, and I thought I would put some sections up. It is great because it shows some of the major advertising men and women of the time, many of whom are the real-life models for characters in Mad Men." Includes a 9-minute video interview with the late Herta Herzog.

The first link in this post is a gateway to view much of Curtis' work for free online. Additional material can be seen at Thought Maybe, Archive.org and his BBC blog. (Curtis: Previously on Metafilter)

posted by zarq (17 comments total)

AHHH, this post is so much fun!
posted by iamkimiam at 8:17 AM on August 23, 2010

Fantastic! Thanks for this.
posted by Shepherd at 8:32 AM on August 23, 2010

That landscape is like something that appears when a flying dream morphs into a nightmare.

Beautiful razor-sharp nightmare.
posted by CynicalKnight at 9:01 AM on August 23, 2010 [1 favorite]

ohhhh, wrong post.

mondaymondaymonday
posted by CynicalKnight at 9:02 AM on August 23, 2010

Great article but it makes me want to burn down civilization.
posted by DU at 9:08 AM on August 23, 2010

> ohhhh, wrong post.

Really? I had thought you'd read the article and made a valid comment.
posted by ardgedee at 9:20 AM on August 23, 2010

That's the 60's abstract art thread, 2 doors of perception down the hall.
posted by iamkimiam at 9:23 AM on August 23, 2010

Yeah, CynicalKnight's comment fit in pretty well.
posted by verb at 9:24 AM on August 23, 2010

Oh man, the curlers at the grocery store. THE CURLERS.

Makes people going outside wearing flannel pajama bottoms look positively civilized in comparison.
posted by sonika at 9:25 AM on August 23, 2010

Great post. I want to live inside Adam Curtis' mind for a while. Not too long.
posted by ardgedee at 9:25 AM on August 23, 2010

Skimming over the post, at first I thought this was a film about the advertising industry featuring Werner Herzog.

WERNER HERZOG EATS AN ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE
posted by Dr Dracator at 9:47 AM on August 23, 2010

That landscape is like something that appears when a flying dream morphs into a nightmare.

Beautiful razor-sharp nightmare.


©PA 2010
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:50 AM on August 23, 2010

"Hidden it vas."

That interview, wow.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:51 AM on August 23, 2010

For those of you who haven't seen them (and this is probably worth a FPP in and of itself) I highly recommend Curtis' series The Century of Self and The Trap. These series are about the best things I've ever seen on TeeVee.
posted by charlie don't surf at 10:34 AM on August 23, 2010

DU: Great article but it makes me want to burn down civilization.

Light Your Fire. Ohio Blue Tip matches, with their handy "strike anywhere" design, burn with the same passion that you do. Let that flame in your heart come out. Available at these fine retailers.
posted by Western Infidels at 10:48 AM on August 23, 2010

CynicalKnight's comment fit in pretty well

Also, look at those white monkeys, flying from peak to peak, strutting their stuff in the among the stone spires they call home.
posted by CynicalKnight at 11:46 AM on August 23, 2010

ah yes in the wild among

genius
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:28 PM on August 23, 2010